London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
City of London 1961
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London, City of ]
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ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION
The routine measurement of atmospheric pollution at the stations in the City of London continued
during the year. The results are set out in the Tables which follow.
TABLE I — Deposit gauge.
The rainfall collected was much below that for 1960, and was less than the average for the
previous five years.
During the year the total amount of soluble and insoluble matter deposited in the collecting
bowl was considerably below the average for the previous years.
TABLE II — Smoke concentrations by the volumetric method.
In 1961 the average concentrations of smoke at two stations— Golden Lane and Cloak Lane —
were below those recorded for the average of the previous five years. At Bishopsgate there was a
small increase whilst at Snow Hill the figure remained constant.
TABLE HI — Sulphur measurement by the volumetric and lead peroxide methods.
The average concentrations of sulphur pollution changed little from the average for the
previous five years. Only at Bishopsgate was there a slight increase.
By the lead peroxide method sulphur pollution at Golden Lane and Finsbury Circus showed
slight decreases when compared with 1960 and with the average of the previous five years.
TABLE I—Results obtained in 1961 of the monthly observations of rainfall and deposited matter by means of the deposit gauges.
| MONTH | Rainfall collected in deposit gauge | DEPOSITS | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equivalent to | Insoluble | Soluble Total | ||||||||
| Millimetres | inches of rain | Millimetres | inches of rain | Tons per square mile | ||||||
| STATIONS (see note belong | ||||||||||
| A | B | A | B | A | B | A | B | |||
| January | 45 | 1.76 | 47 | 1.84 | 16.00 | 16.55 | 8.00 | 10.10 | 24.00 | 26.65 |
| February | 49 | 1.94 | 52 | 2.05 | 17.99 | 19.83 | 8.56 | 7.65 | 26.55 | 27.49 |
| March | 2 | 0.07 | 2 | 0.07 | 27.35 | 7.65 | 3.98 | 4.90 | 31.33 | 12.55 |
| April | 45 | 1.77 | 43 | 1.71 | 16.50 | 20.07 | 9.16 | 8.83 | 25.66 | 28.90 |
| May * | _ | __ | 21 | 0.82 | _ | 14.50 | _ | 4.90 | - | 19.40 |
| June * | _ | _ | 34 | 1.32 | _ | 8.39 | _ | 5.17 | — | 13.56 |
| July | 31 | 1.21 | 36 | 1.43 | 7.30 | 11.98 | 4.22 | 5.74 | 11.52 | 17.72 |
| August | 40 | 1.57 | 49 | 1.92 | 8.80 | 13.83 | 6.31 | 6.95 | 15.10 | 20.77 |
| September | 54 | 2.12 | 51 | 2.03 | 14.80 | 12.18 | 7.60 | 7.65 | 22.40 | 19.83 |
| October | 47 | 1.86 | 58 | 2.29 | 13.44 | 23.63 | 7.70 | 9.50 | 21.14 | 33.12 |
| November | 58 | 2.28 | 56 | 2.19 | 14.64 | 16.21 | 16.73 | 11.58 | 31.36 | 27.79 |
| December | 51 | 2.02 | 73 | 2.89 | 3.38 | 16.11 | 18.19 | 10.64 | 21.57 | 26.75 |
| Averages: | ||||||||||
| 1961 | 42(b) | 1.66(b) | 44 | 1.71 | 14.02(b) | .15.08 | 9.05(b) | 7.80 | 23.05(b) | 22.88 |
| 1960 | 62 | 2.46 | 63 | 2.49 | 14.58 | 12.39 | 7.55 | 8.15 | 22.13 | 20.55 |
| 1959 | 41 | 1.60 | 44(b) | 1.72(b) | 19.81 | 14.81(b) | 8.16 | 19.00(b) | 29.64 | 23.80(b) |
| 1958 | 62 | 2.44 | 66(a) | 2.58(a) | 18.88 | 16.39(a) | 7.39 | 12.06(a) | 26.27 | 28.45(a) |
| 1957 | 42 | 1.66 | — | — | 1456 | — | 7.17 | — | 21.73 | — |
| 1956 | 44 | 1.74 | — | — | 13.31 | —- | 7.80 | — | 21.08 | — |
| 1956-60 | 50 | 1.98 | 58 | 2.26 | 16.23 | 14.53 | 7.61 | 13.07 | 24.17 | 34.27 |
Note: A — Golden Lane. B — Guildhall from 1st June, 1958.
(a) average for 7 months. (b) average for 10 months.
* No recording at Golden Lane owing to defective apparatus.
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